As Philip II of Macedonia, the father of Alexander the Great, waged war to unify classical Greece, he fought and conquered nearly all the major city-states except for the venerated city of Sparta. Maybe with his recent victories and his growing reputation, Philip expected Spartan capitulation, or perhaps he thought he had nothing to lose in sending a threat to the ever-stoic Spartans. Regardless of his motivations, he sent an emissary to Sparta saying something along the lines of, “If I enter Laconia (the region where Sparta was), I will raze it to the ground and it will never rise again.” In the face of this credible martial threat, the Spartans sent back a pithy one-worded rejoinder, the first word of Philip’s message, “If.” After this laconic taunt, Philip didn’t end up attacking Sparta.
About 130 years earlier, the Spartans faced a much more formidable military power, the Persians. In the renowned Battle of Thermopylae, a group of around 7,000 Greeks led by 300 Spartans battled and held back an army of an estimated 120,000 - 300,000 Persians, the premier fighting force of their time, for two days. According to the ancient historian Plutarch, on the eve of the battle, the Persians sent a messenger demanding that the Spartans surrender their arms, to which Leonidas, the leader of the Spartans, simply replied, “Come and take them.” Later, according to the historian Herodotus, when the Spartan Dienekes was told that because of the vast number of arrows coming from the Persian army, it was impossible to see the sun, he cheerfully responded, "So much the better, we'll fight in the shade."
The Spartans were undeniably the ultimate badasses of the ancient world, and through these brief glimpses in history, we have seen shining examples of laconic phrases or laconism. Laconism refers to a style of speaking or writing that is concise, terse, and impactful. The term originates from Laconia, a region of ancient Greece that included the city-state of Sparta, where the inhabitants were known for their brevity of speech and pointed, efficient use of words. Laconism emphasizes saying much with few words, often delivering messages that are sharp, direct, and often witty.
In the face of ostensible doom, the Spartans had a grim but bright sense of what some would call radical optimism. Radical optimism, aside from being Dua Lipa’s newest album, is an unwavering and proactive belief in the potential for positive outcomes, usually in the face of significant challenges or adversity. It involves a deep-seated confidence in the possibility of achieving the best results, and it frequently drives individuals to take bold, creative actions to improve their circumstances and the world around them. Radical optimists maintain their hopeful outlook not just as a passive expectation but as a motivating force that inspires persistence, resilience, and innovative problem-solving.
It is important to know that this isn’t some naïve, cultish belief that everything is wonderful and that difficult situations will magically work out. It is a positive belief based on evidence, logic, hope, and work; otherwise, this powerful mindset can quickly devolve into a poisonous delusion. Blind optimism can lead to toxic positivity, which is simply a symptom of dysfunctional emotional management.
Toxic positivity is a fairly mild form of emotional disassociation from so-called “negative” emotions—emotions like anger or sadness that a healthy person needs to feel and master, not shy away from. I’ll bet we have all met people struggling with the taxing and damaging façade of toxic positivity. These people have a less than genuine, detached, ever-present, almost unnerving sense of positivity in the face of unpleasant things, and it is easy to see through. We must never become these people, people who willingly put blinders on and say that there are no bad situations. It is the acceptance and reframing of these tough situations that is the important part.
Humans throughout our existence have been conditioned toward negativity and pessimism because it is generally safer that way. Psychologists have creatively termed this tendency the “Negativity Bias.” The funny thing is that conventional wisdom will tell us that pessimists are usually right, but only optimists will succeed wildly in places and in a fashion that was previously not thought possible. Radical optimism is a game of probabilities; we might not be right the first ten times, but as we continue to work with the belief that we will gain great victories and a bunch of good stories along the way, we will eventually make that a reality.
Winston Churchill had a lot to be pessimistic and fearful about in his time, but he was quoted saying, “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” With the lens of our newfound radical optimism, every weakness and every storm cloud has a silver lining, a huge opportunity in every weakness or ill fortune. You don’t have enough time? Good, this will teach you to prioritize. You don’t have the right people for a job? Good, you have a wonderful opportunity to build up people who have fresh perspectives. You don’t have the conventional resources for a task? Nice, creativity loves constraint. This will be a great opportunity to optimize and innovate. There are so many arrows being shot at us that we cannot see the sun. Awesome, I guess it will provide some much-needed shade for us to fight in. We’re down bad at halftime? Great, this is just a prerequisite for a legendary comeback win. It could be as simple as recognizing that whatever unpleasant thing we are going through will be easier the next time it comes up or lead us to make necessary changes to safeguard against it.
Radical optimism and laconic wit will not change the dire circumstances you may be in, but they will help train your brain to bridge the gap from your current predicament to some tangible advantage. It conditions you to search for good and to help you see a path forward. It generates a motivating positive stress and puts us in a growth mindset.
Sparta’s fame and mindset have echoed through history, and for good reason. There are endless stories and fun laconism that add to their lauded history. Aside from the eugenics-induced infanticide, slavery, and brutal enforcement of Spartan ideals, they were pretty enlightened for their time. It’d be wise to draw strength from their battle-hardened humor/optimism and incorporate it into our lives. One day, when our backs are against the wall, we will be able to calm ourselves, shrug, say that this isn’t the whole story, and be confident that the best is yet to come.